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The heavy police presence near the Longport Bridge on Wednesday morning drew a lot of detention.
But what was originally believed to be a child's body turned out to be a doll, authorities said.
Egg Harbor Township police were called to the scene for what was believed to be a child's body found in the marsh by a fisherman, the Police Department said in a social media post.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit responded along with members of the New Jersey State Police following protocol for a homicide investigation.
But it turned out to be "a doll wrapped in a blanket to make it look like a body," a source told BreakingAC.
The post by township police described it as "a silicone anatomically correct doll."
An investigation will continue into who may have discarded the lifelike doll, and why they chose to do so in a way that wasted valuable resources while it was investigated, police said.
The township department thanked the Prosecutor's Office and State Police for their assistance.
"We are thankful that this was not, in fact, a real child and hope that if anyone has information on who may have done this would contact our agency," the statement read.
Anyone with information can call township police at 609) 927-5200
